Undergraduate Students
Welcome to the Hawai’i Pre-Health Career Corps! Do you want to learn more about health careers? Are you interested in being a part of a support system for college and career preparation? Join the Hawaii Pre-Health Career Corps!
To become a Corps member, fill out this online application:
Undergraduate Student Resources
HCOP Scholarship: Now accepting applicants!
The Hawaii Pacific Basin AHEC, Inc. Health Careers Opportunity Program is designed to utilize a wide network of partners, resources and past HCOP achievements to empower 850 economically or educationally disadvantaged students from the US Pacific Basin to enter the health workforce or be admitted to health professional schools.
Qualified Applicants Must:
Be a participant of the Health Careers Opportunity Program
Applying/accepted to a health professional school
Demonstrate a consistent and sincere interest in pursuing a health profession
Possess a minimum, cumulative 3.0 GPA
To Apply, Click the following link:
*All supplemental documents can be scanned and emailed to jpalmer3@hawaii.edu
Volunteering is a wonderful way to give back to your community and to explore the many areas of healthcare. We encourage you to engage in different types of volunteer work, including non-clinical opportunities such as at museums, schools and not for profit organizations.
Do you need help finding a volunteer opportunity? We are here to assist you! Contact us at phcc@hawaii.edu
Career shadowing is an opportunity for a student to spend time with a healthcare professional in order to learn more about a career and observe daily work activities. The benefits of career shadowing include:
- Learning about the educational preparation and experience that is necessary to enter a specific field
- Understanding better what you want and do not want in a career
- Being introduced to a career that you may not have considered
- Gain experience to include on your high school resume
- Expanding your networking contacts
Shadowing Opportunities through PHCC
We are happy to assist you in finding a healthcare professional to shadow. We are able to place Corps members with 1-day or half day shadowing with health professionals. Corps members can shadow up to three professionals a year, depending on availability.
If you have not participated in Corps events or volunteered with us in the past, we request that you complete the following before we can set you up with shadowing:
- Call 15 health professionals’ offices to try to set up shadowing on your own. For guidance with this process, email phcc@hawaii.edu
- Attend a 1- hour HIPAA and shadowing training at our Center
If you have participated in Corps events or volunteered with us in the past, we request that you complete #2 in the above list: attend the 1-hour HIPAA and shadowing training at our Area Health Education Center.
For inquiries and to schedule an appointment, email phcc@hawaii.edu
Also, check out these other career shadowing programs below:
Tripler Army Medical Center Shadowing By becoming trained as a Red Cross volunteer at Tripler Army Medical Center, you are able to shadow any physician at Tripler (assuming they are willing). You will have access to the Tripler physician directory and will be able to request to shadow the physician of your choice as a “volunteer”.
Hawaii Pacific Health Summer Student Research Program: For college and university students. Has a shadowing component
The Rehabilitation Hospital of the Pacific has a shadowing program for those 17 years old and over. Call 808-566-3443 for more info.
There are so many research, internship and summer opportunities available to you, both in and out of state! Our Area Health Education Center office also has a listing of health professionals who are interested in providing students with the above opportunities, so if you need assistance finding an opportunity, please contact us at phcc@hawaii.edu.
Ongoing Opportunities
MSMP’s Research and Summer Programs listing
University of Hawaii Department of Biology Internship and Research Listing
University of Hawaii at Hilo Pacific Internships Program for Exploring Science
Health Initiatives, Clinical and Humanitarian Aid Opportunities
Summer Opportunities
Hawaii Pacific Health Summer Student Research Program
Hawaii Pacific Health Health Careers Summer Internship
IDeA Network for Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE)
JABSOM’s Science in Action: Medical Diagnosis and Treatment program
University of Hawaii Cancer Center Summer Research Internship
MSMP’s Research and Summer Programs listing
Minority Health and Health Disparities International Research Training Program
Summer Opportunities Abroad
Summer Medical and Dental Education Program
Keck Graduate Institute Summer Research Program
The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Summer Institute in Anatomy for Undergraduates
Des Moines Health PASS Program
Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine Summer Scholars Programs
Michigan Health Sciences Career Development Academy
- also their Summer Enrichment Program
Institute for Sustainable International Studies (ISIS Belize) Summer Programs
Spring Break Opportunities
Atherton YMCA’s Alternative Spring Break: Medical Mission
Globalbrigades.org is a student led global health and sustainable development international non-profit with health projects in Nicaragua, Honduras, Panama, and Ghana.
Health Career Advising: Wondering what health career is a good fit for you? Schedule an appointment to meet with our health career advisor, Sheri Gon. Parents/guardians are welcome. Email phcc@hawaii.edu to schedule your appointment.
CV/Resume and Personal Statement Advising: Let our specialist, Monique Tsang, revise and provide feedback on your CV/Resume and personal statement. Email them to phcc@hawaii.edu . Here is a sample CV that you can refer to when crafting your own.
Take advantage of these tutoring and test prep services:
University of Hawaii Online Learning Academy: Math, science and writing tutoring for all public K-12 and community college students statewide
EdReady: Math and English support for K-12 and higher education students in the State of Hawaii. Also includes SAT and ACT support.
Khan Academy: Online tutoring of numerous academic subjects and SAT preparation (Go to the “Subjects” drop down menu at the top of the page”
MSMP’s List of Resources to prepare for the MCAT: Contains links to practice exams, practice questions, study schedules and more.
AAMC’s resources for MCAT preparation
Educational Testing Service’s resources for GRE Preparation
Kaplan MCAT Prep Discount
We are offering discounted Kaplan MCAT Prep (a discounted price of $1299 vs. regular price $2499)! This offer is good for any of Kaplan’s live in-person and live online MCAT courses. This offer is good for any of these Kaplan courses (for live in-person) and these Kaplan courses (for live online). The course can be taken in Hawaii, or any other U.S. state that offers it. If you are interested, please email phcc@hawaii.edu.
Please email phcc@hawaii.edu to make an advising appointment with us.
University of Hawaii’s Pre-Health Advising Center : Located on the UH Manoa Campus, the Pre-Health Advising Center is a free service open to ALL students across the state who would like pre-health academic advising.
Medical Student Mentorship Program (MSMP): MSMP pairs college students who are interested in medicine with medical students at the John A. Burns School of Medicine. Medical students serve as mentors to college pre-med students and keep in contact both via email and in-person. MSMP offers events such as PBL Demos, Medical Specialties Seminars, Med School Application/interview/personal statement workshops, Suturing Workshop, Vital Signs and Physical Exam Workshop, and Med student panels. The mentoring program is open to pre-med students throughout the state.
Native Hawaiian Student Pathway to Medicine Program: Preference given to Native Hawaiian applicants. Guides students on their path to becoming future physicians and health professionals through workshops, individualized advising / career counseling and opportunity for stipend funding for MCAT Prep.
UH Manoa’s Student Equity, Excellence and Diversity (SEED): Offers programs for promoting college opportunity for disadvantaged and underrepresented groups
My NMRN is a free online mentor/mentee networking platform where you can find a mentor in research or health related disciplines.
There are so many health careers out there, how do you choose? Use these resources to help you find the health career that’s right for you!
AHEC Resources
***“Which Health Careers Are Right For You?” Online Quiz! Are you wondering which health careers are right for you? Take our online “Which Health Career Is Right For You?” quiz to identify the careers that are your best fit! Your quiz results will link to the corresponding pages in our online Hawaii Health Career Navigator book so that you can learn more about each career.***
AHEC’s Hawaii Health Career Navigator Book: Learn about the various health professions in the State of Hawaii and how to get there
Career Exploration Websites
AHEC’s Hawaii Health Career Navigator Book: Learn about the various health professions in the State of Hawaii and how to get there
AAMC’s Navigate Your Journey from Pre-Med through Residency: Advice for choosing a medical career path
Directory of Health Degrees in Hawaii Find out what health degrees you can get in the state of Hawaii
Explore Health Careers: Great resource with overviews of healthcare professions and more
NIH OITE Careers Blog: Lots of tips on career exploration, applying for med school and more.
UH Manoa’s “What Can I Do With This Major?” Page
Learn How To Become: How to work in healthcare and medicine
Specific guidance on proper certifications and licensure, financial aid and salary information
Take These Quizzes To Find Out Which Health Careers Are Right For You!
Health Careers Test: This short quiz helps you discover which health careers match your personality, interests and skill set.
Medical Specialty Aptitude Test: Take this quiz to find out which medical specialty matches with your personality, interests and skill set.
UH’s College and Career Website: Take a RIASEC test to identify which careers and areas of study best suit you, get resume and application assistance, and more
Science Careers: Individual Development Plan: Excellent website with exercises that examine your skills, interests and values to help you find the right science career for you
Info on Specific Careers
Aspiring Docs: If you want to be a doctor or you are thinking about what it takes to become a doctor, then this is the website to begin your journey.
Social Work Guide: Learn about the field of social work and what steps to take to become a social worker.
“How will I pay for this? “is a common question that students ask when faced with paying for college, graduate school or professional school. There are many ways to answer this question. Visit the following links to learn more:
MoneyGeek’s Student Loans Overview
Make College Affordable:
Student Loan Guidebook and College Savings and 529 Plans
Professions that Pay for College Tuition: https://www.affordablecollegesonline.org/college-resource-center/professions-that-pay-tuition/
Nursing Scholarships: https://www.affordablecollegesonline.org/degrees/nursing-programs/scholarships/
Companies that Pay for Grad School: https://www.gograd.org/financial-aid/companies-paying-for-grad-school/
UH’s Pre-Health Advising Center’s 4-year academic plan for Pre-Med Students